Extras of Ga'Hoole
by Arunei
Summary: The following chapters are a series of OneShots explaining in my words some stories of owl names that were mentioned in the books but were never expanded on, such as Soren's Parents. R&R please!
1. The Betrayal

**Betrayal**

**A/N**

**Hi guys, I've been reading the Guardians of Ga'Hoole series ever since it came out about three years ago, and now I've got my hands on the 10th book muahaha. Anyways, this one shot is about Soren's Mum and Dad when they lose their 2nd son. This starts right after Soren falls off the Fir Tree where his hollow is. What happens with Soren's parents Noctus and Marella after they come home from their hunting trip? Ultimately, if you've read the rest of the books you'll know who goes where!**

**Just so everyone knows. I don't own Guardians of Ga'Hoole!**

They were just coming home from grabbing their supper and an extra snack for their owlets, when they heard a little scream pierce the night air.

"Oh dear, is that an owl screaming?" Marella Alba's eyes widened in fear. The owl kept screaming, but soon, the screaming sound, and the forest was dead quiet.

"We'd better get home quick. Don't worry, our chicks will be fine." Noctus Alba assured his wife, and the couple quickened their speed to their hollow, where Kludd, Soren and their newborn hatchling Eglantine would be waiting for them. Noctus held the vole firmly in his talons.

They alighted down onto their hollow. Eglantine was fast asleep in her blanket of moss and down. They saw Kludd staring over the edge. He had a scared expression on his white face. Strange for Kludd.

"S-S-Soren…H-he... he fell over the edge of t-the h-hollow!" Kludd quivered. "I-I heard him s-screaming, and then it got really q-quiet!" Kludd hopped across the hollow to hide in his mother's wing, looking at his father, wondering what he would do.

"This is bad Marella. They're not just taking owl eggs anymore," Noctus declared, "they're taking owlets who can't even fly yet! We have to leave this forest immediately. We should head for the forest of Ambala. I know a couple of owls there who would take us in."

"But Noctus, Kludd can't fly yet, and Eglantine hasn't even had her First Meat ceremony! We can't leave yet! Not now! Are you suggesting we walk?" Marella retorted.

At the mention of flying, Kludd shot out from under his mother's wing and announced, "I can too fly! I was practicing while you two were hunting before Soren fell over!" He furiously flapped his wings and started flying. He barely flew 10 feet before Noctus exploded.

"KLUDD! GET BACK HERE! WE DON'T WANT TO LOSE YOU TOO!" Noctus' angry voice echoed throughout the forest.

"Dear…please calm down." Marella patted the back of Noctus, then she ordered everyone to go to sleep, and they would decide everything the next night.

It was late morning when a talon tapped on the sleeping Kludd's shoulder. Kludd woke up with a jump.

"Commander Kludd, please wake up." Said the owl. Kludd groggily got up. "Is it time for the next one?"

Half awake, Kludd smiled, "Yeah. She's over there, right in the middle of the nest. Make sure you don't lose her Jutt." He looked at the owl accompanying Jutt. "Jatt, keep her chattering beak shut, or she'll wake the whole forest okay?" Jatt nodded, and the two owls flew over to Eglantine. Jutt stayed behind a bit.

"Here are your battle claws sir." He handed Kludd a pair or sharpened battle claws. Kludd's eyes widened intensely.

Jatt clamped her beak by squeezing her beak between two of his talons. A bit too hard. Eglantine's eyes shot open. She tried to open her beak to scream, but it just hurt her more to open her beak. Jutt clutched her small owl body with all his talons, and within six seconds the two owls were off towards the orphanage.

Kludd smiled. Nyra would be proud of him. He had passed the test. He had showed no compassion for he had just given two of his siblings to the orphanage. He went back to sleep and had dreams of owl domination. He never noticed Mrs. Plithiver was watching the whole thing.

The next night, Marella gasped when she realized that another one of her owlets had disappeared. "Noctus!" She shrieked. She almost went yeep before Noctus held her in his wing. Kludd shrank back and pulled something sharp from under his blanket of moss.

"This is bad." Noctus' eyes shined like the stars. He would not be able to bear it if Kludd were taken away as well. "Dear? Did you hear anything throughout the morning?"

"No…I didn't hear a thing. Kludd? Did you hear anything? Kludd?" Marella looked around, but her son was nowhere to be seen! "KLUDD!" Was she about to lose another one?

"Yes mother, I'm right behind you. Tell me what it's like up there alright?" Kludd snickered. Marella whirled around just to see Kludd charge forward to plunge her heart out.

"Not on my watch!" Another body dived in front of Marella to take the blow.

"NO! NOCTUS!" Marella couldn't bear to watch. She covered her eyes with her wing as she heard the weapons on Kludd's talons strike her husband. She looked up. Kludd had his father's blood all over him, and he was smiling! She looked into his eyes, and they weren't the ones she had recognized when he had hatched.

"Why…K-kludd. WHY!" Marella held her dead husband close to her

"Psh, like you'd care to know, MOTHER. But I think a better name for you from now on will be raccoon meat. No one else to take your blows I see. See you later!" Kludd charged his mother, and ripped her heart out. Pleased with his victory, he took off his battle claws and began to feast on the remains of his parents.

_Elsewhere…before the deaths of Marella and Noctus_

Jutt had let go of Eglantine's beak as soon as they entered the Desert of Kuneer, where no one would hear them, as all the burrowing owls would be in their little hollows in the ground. Jatt was only gently holding Eglantine.

"LET GO OF ME YOU JERKS!" Eglantine was furious and depressed. She would never have her first fur, branching, first bones, and first flight ceremonies thanks to these bullies. And her mum and dad, she'd never see them again. And what about Kludd? Was he involved in this? She was not about to let this bullies have their way with her! She would fight the power!

Eglantine bit down hard on Jatt's soft underbelly, making him draw blood and howl with pain. He let her fall.

She was falling too fast. She would surely die if she fell down at this rate. Her instincts kicked in. Eglantine was flapping her non-full fledged wings. Though it did slow her down enough to not suffer death from her fall, it may be enough to damage her brain a bit. She crashed into the soft sands of the Kuneer desert. She rolled onto her back and looked up. Jutt and Jatt had taken her for dead and decided to hurry on to where they were going. She smiled. But she was worried. She couldn't fly. She couldn't hunt. She didn't have her right ceremonies yet. But she wouldn't give up. Not like this. This would be a grand story to tell Soren. She would teach herself how to do all these things!

With a high head, she stood up, and started hopping in a direction she wasn't sure of. Wherever she was going, it had to be better than here in this desert.


	2. Moon Blinked

**Moon Blinked**

**A/N Hi everyone. This one-shot is about the owl Rocmore who Gylfie mentions is the owl who got moon blinked in the Desert of Kuneer. If you need more reference, turn to Page 46 of Book One in the Guardians of Ga'Hoole series. Also, I don't remember if the book ever says which kind of tree Rocmore lived in, so let's just assume he lived in a cactus just like Gylfie!**

**Though I wish I did, I don't own Guardians of Ga'Hoole anymore than I do to Christmas. Remember to read and review especially if you're reading this!**

Out on the Desert of Kuneer, near a big gulch sat an ancient Smoke Tree, whose roots had sprouted up and over the dry ground. They eventually criss-crossed each other back into the ground. The final result was a grand tree that provided lots of shade between its roots on the ground, and with that shade many small voles and mice hid from the hot sun.

Nearby the Smoke Tree an eight-foot wide and long giant cactus with a six-inch wide and long hollowed middle. This hollow housed over five owls, two parents and their hatchlings, of which included the Elf Owl Gylfie.

Gylfie had just started branching that night. Her parents had taken a break from hunting that night to help teach their chick to branch. Gylfie hopped over from her moss bed to her parents. "Let's go let's go let's go!" she squealed. "Let's go branching!"

"Now now Gylfie," her da began, "Branching may sound fun, but it can be dangerous if you don't watch where you're going. Am I right dear?" Gylfie's mum was standing beside her husband. She nodded.

"But! I find it especially wonderful when you two lift me up from our hollow to the top of the **Astrophytum Myriostigma!" **Gylfie whined.

_For those of you who don't know, Astrophytum Myriostigma is the scientific name for 'Star Cactus' which is the cactus Gylfie and her family should live in. Back to the story…_

"Good good, you're learning your words properly. Well, enough of these dilly-dallies. Shall we?" Gylfie's mum smiled. Together, Gylfie's mum picked her up between her talons and flew her out and up the cactus. Gylfie's da briefly followed after making sure Gylfie's siblings were fed.

Up on the top of the cactus, Gylfie and her mum flew towards the Smoke Tree near their hollow. The Smoke Tree provided lots of room and branches for branching, and this was where the parents taught all their hatchlings how to branch.

"Squee!" Gylfie rejoiced as her mum set her down and alighted beside her. Her dad continued to hover around the tree ready to catch her if anything happened.

"Alright Gylfie, remember what we taught you. Extend your talons as you jump from one branch to another. If you don't, you may be caught hanging like one of those repulsive bats. That a girl Gylfie." Gylfie's father beamed. His daughter was a fast learner; she would be able to start flying as soon as her flight feathers grew.

The moon shone brightly that night. After an hour or so, Gylfie was getting really tired, and her talons ached. She alighted on a branch, and before she knew it, she was dozing off. She fell into a deep sleep, but only for about five seconds, as her father gave the side of her beak a weak slap.

"Gylfie! Don't fall asleep here!" Her father urged.

"Eherm? Why da?" she mumbled, waking up a bit.

"I'll explain after we get back to the hollow." He picked her up in his talons and flew her back to the hollow. Her mum flew after them with a panic-stricken face.

Back at the hollow, Gylfie's mum quickly asked, "Are you okay Gylfie? How are your wings? Is your gizzard feeling alright?"

"Yes mum." Gylfie answered. This was the fifth time her mum had asked her that this evening.

"Alright." Said Gylfie's da. "Let's begin the story. This is a true story, as it happened with the other Elf Owls living near us before you were born…"

---------------------

In another cactus down the desert, two owls were in a hollow watching a shaking egg. The egg hatched, and out came Rocmore and Erin's first owlet.

"Aww, isn't it adorable?" Erin pointed out. "It's a boy!"

"Yes it is dear." Rocmore gave his wife a hug. "Let's name him Nate."

"That's a nice name." Erin agreed, and then she poked a feather at Nate, "Hi Naaaate! You like your new name? Oh! I almost forgot! He's hungry! Rocmore! We forgot to get the worm! Get your tail feathers to the Smoke Tree and get a worm NOW!"

Rocmore, being the lazy Elf owl he was, complained. "But why dear? Why can't YOU go, and I watch Nate? I've got stories to tell him!"

His complaint was answered with a swift kick to his side, a really hard one, one that sent him flying out of the hollow and into the ground. Thankfully, not many animals wandered in this part of the desert, it was far too hot even though it was nighttime now.

Erin peeped her head out of the hollow. She gasped. Her kick only sent him that far out of the hollow? She'd better work on that. She waited for him to stop faking pain and to go get the worm. Nothing happened for a minute, and Nate was still crying.

"ROCMORE! GO! NOW!" Eric roared down from the hollow. But Rocmore couldn't hear her, he was unconscious and in a deep sleep. Erin sighed. Maybe she did kick a bit too hard, but he was always lazy and this was the last straw. She looked at Rocmore, then at the owlet, then back at Rocmore. She decided to put the owlet in front of Rocmore for her priorities, as it is always easier to carry an owl between your talons when you don't have an owlet screaming for food.

She lifted off from the hollow and flew as fast as she could to the Smoke Tree. It didn't take her long to find a worm as the full moon helped light her way to a fat worm struggling to crawl into a hole it had made for itself. Within another 5 minutes she had made it back to the hollow, and the owlet had now had its First Insect Ceremony. Now to get Rocmore, she thought. She looked down. Rocmore was still in the sand, unconscious. "I guess I'd better wake him up first," she told herself, "Or he may start sleep-singing."

She lighted down beside him, and gave him a small slap to his face. "How are you feeling Rocmore?" she cooed at him, trying to show she still loved him.

Rocmore opened and blinked his eyes. Erin noticed they were a bit glassy for some weird reason. She decided not to push it. "I, Rocmore am feeling perfect, wife Erin."

Haha, Rocmore knows how to make an owl laugh, Erin thought to herself. "Alright, let's get you back up to the hollow. Stand up." Erin instructed Rocmore. But instead of standing up, Rocmore started to dig with his talons deeper into the dry ground.

"Hey hey Rocmore! Stop digging and stand up!" Erin ordered, but Rocmore just dug faster. "Argh, here, give me your left wing." Rocmore uselessly started to flap his right wing and hopped on his right foot. Hmm, Erin thought. He does everything that's opposite to what I tell him, good thing he wasn't out in the moon that long…wait a minute…the moon! Could it be the moon that's causing malfunctions in his brain? Erin closed her eyes for a brief minute. Rocmore was still acting stupid. Sure enough, her gizzard stilled a bit, and she opened her eyes with a shock. Lesson learned, she thought. Don't sleep in the moonlight. Back to Rocmore. If he does everything the opposite, I should be able to fix this. She turned to Rocmore.

"Rocmore!" Erin called, "Stay the glaux AWAY from me!" She smiled. Rocmore should start coming to her. But instead he started flapping his wings, and he soared upwards, up to the top of a small cactus. He didn't go to Erin, but he was close to the hollow.

"Okay Rocmore! Fly AWAY from the hollow you see." Erin instructed. Rocmore spread his wings, but instead of flying upwards, he flew straight into the hard ground. Erin heard a loud CRACK as Rocmore crashed into the ground. Dead she thought. She flew over, and inspected his body as tears flowed out of her eyes. She said a few prayers and buried Rocmore. She left her crying owlet in the hollow and she started flying. Anywhere would be better than this stupid desert and its stupid full moonlight. She only stopped flying once to tell a passing owl why not to sleep in the full moonlight.

--------------

"And that owl was me." Gylfie's da said proudly. "From that day on, I don't know where Erin went, and I don't know what happened to her owlet. But I do know why you cannot fall asleep while there's a moon out there Gylfie. Hopefully you can pass this information to all the future owls you'll meet, and tell them all about what I call moon blinking!"

Gylfie nodded and went to sleep in her moss blanket and bed as the sun slowly crept over the horizon.


	3. The Infiltration: Part 1

**Infiltration: Part One**

**A/N Hello everyone again! This is Aru reporting that he's almost finished with his Third Extra's of Ga'Hoole fanfic! Hooray, let's all dance and share biscuits! Anyways, this fanfic is about the life of Hortense to her infiltration into St. Aggie's and finally to her meeting with Soren and Gylfie. **

**If you want to look up the Hortense bits go to Page 121-123 of Book One: The Capture**

**I found this fanfic was really hard to make since Hortense gives but a few paragraphs of how she grew up. I hope you all enjoy this fanfic better than the last one, which got un-satisfactory reviews. Also, since I think this is a really important "Extra" of Ga'Hoole. I'm splitting this One-Shot into a Two-Shot special!**

**PS: Just so all you legal people know, I own the Guardian's of Ga'Hoole series as much as I own West Jet. D Let the fanfic begin! Also, the name Cedric will be mentioned, so I don't own Harry Potter either :) **

It was a dark night. The crescent moon hung high in the bright night sky and shone across the Forest Kingdom of Ambala. In the hollow of an ancient Fir Tree, a female Spotted Owl was ushering her owlet out for his First Flight.

"Come on Nacar, you can do it! Flap your wings down hard to take off, then instincts will kick in and you'll soar in the light of the moon!" The Spotted Owl gave her son a small push and he was off!

"Mum! Mum! Look at me! I'm flying!" The young owlet squealed.

Inside the hollow, another Spotted Owl could be found staring in awe as she watched her little brother do loops and sharp turns. She wilfed, as she always did at least once every other day. She lifted up her own wing and sighed when she saw that she was still full of down and the primary feathers were just starting to poke up from the skin. She was over a month and a half old and was a fortnight older than her sibling Nacar, and she still wasn't fully fledged!

Nacar was still flying high in the sky when he saw a baby vole on the soft grass below the hollow. I'm going to show Mum I can hunt, he thought. He dove sharply and extended his talons. He pulled up at the last moment and sliced the vole. It lay on the ground, blood staining the grass. He picked up the vole up brought it back to his mum in the hollow. She beamed when she saw her son come back with a vole. He had just started flying a couple of days ago as well!

"Good job Nacar!" She patted his head. "Here, give it your sister for a present, seeing as she can't fly yet."

The female owlet in the hollow wilfed even more when she saw her little brother approaching her with a dead vole in his beak. She couldn't help but envy him for learning how to hunt so fast.

"Hortense! Hortense! Look what I brought you! Do you think I did a good job of killing it? Do you? Do you?" Nacar exclaimed.

"Of course I do Nacar. I'm nothing but proud of you little brother." Hortense returned to her normal size and preened Nacar. Nacar beamed with pride and snuggled up close to Hortense.

"How I wish I could fly…" Hortense whispered so quietly not even Nacar could hear her.

_A few months later…_

"Yes! The day has arrived! Look out world, Hortense has fully fledged!" Hortense danced around the hollow, showing off her feathers to her da. "Though they are quite rickety-shaped…"

"Hortense…" Her da warned, "I don't think you should be flying just yet."

"Nonsense! I feel perfectly well Da!" Hortense hopped over to the edge of the hollow. "Give me a push Nacar!"

"Sure." Nacar responded up higher in the hollow. Nacar was glad this day had finally come. Now his sister could share the joy of flight with him! He glided down to her and gave her a small push. Hortense fell over and plummeted straight down. She beat her wings furiously and managed to break into a hover above the ground, moments from a crash. Why couldn't she fly properly? She had seen Nacar do it a million times and she had what her da called 'belief', but she just called it willpower. By the time she had returned to the hollow, she was tired beyond 'belief'.

"Hortense! Come here!" Her mum called, and she began to preen her. "Hmm…I see your flight feathers have grown in at an odd angle. I'm afraid you'll only be able to fly short distances since you'll be so tired out from flapping your weak wings. Sorry Hortense." Her mum shook a sad face to Hortense.

Hortense was about to go yeep, but she managed to quaver, "B-but, this i-is only t-t-temporary right m-mum?"

"Sorry dearest, but this flight feather arrangement is for life. They'll always grow out like this even if you molt them."

Hortense went to her moss bed bawling her eyes. She would never be able to fly like a normal owl, even if she had the 'belief'.

_Four years later, Nacar and Hortense's parents have past away. Just recently, Nacar has flown away to live with his new mate…_

Hortense was living with a family of Short Eared Owls for a couple of weeks. They had heard her story of how her feathers had grown at an odd angle and why she couldn't hunt properly without totally exhausting herself first. She ate peacefully with them each night, thanking them deeply each time they brought her a dead vole or squirrel, but inside, she hated herself for having to always rely on other owls to help serve their needs, and she wouldn't be able to repay them in anyway, except maybe preen them. Today the owls feasted on a gigantic fat vole that the female Short Eared Owl Nirma had killed.

"My, this vole that you killed is wonderfully delicious Nirma!" Hortense was in one of her better moods, and she gratefully thanked Nirma.

"Oh don't thank me. It was Cedric who spotted the vole hidden underneath a tree root." Nirma snuggled up next to her mate, but he didn't smile back.

"There's been news, Hortense." He said gravely, "Owl eggs and owlets are being snatched right in the open night." Hortense was appalled.

"No!" she gasped, "What kind of wretched bird would commit such an act? Perhaps a bunch of crows? It wouldn't be some bald eagles, that's for sure. I know a pair of them who live near here."

"Actually…" Nirma had picked up the grave tone, "An Sooty Owl that we met while hunting told us it was a group of evil owls who run a place called St. Aegolius Academy for Orphaned Owls; St. Aggie's for short. Inaccurately named for an academy for kidnapped owls!" Nirma was angry, as she had begun to puff up, making her look twice as large. "I outta teach those owls a lesson in how to care for your _own _owlets!"

Nirma stood up and flew over to the nest, where the eggs were. "Don't they look adorable?" She asked softly. "It's such a shame that one of them will be gone tomorrow."

Hortense's ears pricked up. "What? Your egg shall be gone tomorrow? But why? They all look in perfect condition!"

"You see, Hortense." Cedric began to explain their plan, "Nirma and I, and the rest of the Forest Council want to get to the bottom of these dirty deeds of St. Aggie's, but we don't know where they're keeping all the snatched owlets." Hortense nodded. "So we've decided to let one of our eggs go. Tomorrow, I will take an egg and place it near the ground. I'll stand guard to make sure only two identical owls come to pick it up. We learned that these two owls are twins and are high-ranked within the academy."

Hortense felt immediate sorrow as she heard their plan to give up one of their eggs. Something twinged within her gizzard, and she knew what to do. She spoke. "I'll get your egg back! I promise!"

"But how Hortense? How will you get into St. Aggie's after the egg is in there?" Nirma asked.

"All my life, I've been depending on other owls. At first, it was just my parents, which was just fine. Then my brother Nacar had to support me, even though he had met another owl he had wanted to mate. Then one day, I met you two, and you are the most sweet, kind loving owls anyone could be acquainted with, friends in my case. But, I'm also sick of always having to rely on other owls! I want to make something of my life! Not just saying the usual "Thank you dear.", or "You're so kind!" and so on. Please, let me do this! It's not just my head that's telling me this; it's my gizzard as well!" Hortense finished her speech, and Nirma and Cedric were speechless.

Cedric looked into the eyes of Hortense and saw nothing but the courage he wished he had. He himself wanted to infiltrate St. Aggie's, but he was too scared he'd never make it in. It was said St. Aggie's had deadly weapons called 'battle claws'. He saw the fire in Hortense he wished he had. He looked at Nirma at the nest, who gave him a silent nod. Cedric stood up.

"Alright Hortense. I understand completely how you feel. I only wish I had the same courage as you. I'll take you to the council. Just remember this. My next owlet, be it female or male, shall be named Hortense in your honor." Cedric gave a wide smile to Hortense, who returned the gesture.

They flew a few trees down the forest, Cedric offered to stop several times for Hortense to rest, but all Hortense would say was, "No more relying. I need to take control."

They arrived at the council, where a guard hovered outside.

"State your business." He opened sternly.

Hortense flew forward and proudly said, "I have the plan to free many owl eggs from St. Aggies."

Cedric gaped. Hortense had volunteered to only retrieve his egg, and now she was telling she would retrieve other eggs as well! Could she have other plans as well?

"Please proceed." The guard flew aside for them to pass.

The Council was made up of three elderly owls, full wisdom and good judgment. The owls smiled as they saw the stunted Hortense fly in. She didn't give them a chance to say anything.

"I wish to infiltrate St. Aegolius Academy for Orphaned Owls and to free as many owl eggs as I can." She lighted down on a branch in front of the Council branches and perched proud. The Council saw that she was dead serious.


	4. The Infiltration: Part 2

**Infiltration: Part Two**

**A/N Hey everyone! It's me again, Aru of course, and obviously I'm here to present the conclusion of Hortense's infiltration into St. Aggies to free the stolen owl eggs. Well, I hope you all enjoy the story, and if you ARE reading this, I urge you to review. It helps me immensely to hear what people think of my writing. You can tell me if my writing totally rots no problem. **

**Enough chit-chat, here we go! Remember to REVIEW!**

**Also, if you didn't already know, I don't own any portion of Guardians of Ga'Hoole! Lines from the book The Capture WILL BE USED!**

"But how will you get into St. Aggies? You're already a full-fledged owl Hortense!" The Council asked her.

"It's fine; I was getting tired of having these feathers." Hortense replied and casually plucked a feather from her breast. The Council gasped.

"Are you sure this is what you want Hortense?" The High Councilman Perton asked Hortense. The Burrowing Owl leaned and observed with a squinted amber eye at Hortense.

The Spotted Owl nodded. "I'm positive, I'll make Ambala proud!" Hortense puffed out her chest.

"Alright, I will send for two Snowies to fly you through the HALOs tomorrow evening."

"HALO?"

"Sorry, HALO stands for High Altitude Low Opening, which means you wait for a thick cloudy day where the Snowies will blend in and fly you to the headquarters of St. Aggies."

"Alright." concluded Hortense. "I will see you tomorrow evening." She flew out of the hollow with Cedric, who bowed low to her.

"You are my hero Hortense." He whispered.

Early the next evening, Hortense was perched at the top of a towering tree, observing the forest. She had better take this sight in now, as there was a chance she'd never see it again. She swiveled her head to the right and saw the hollow she had shared with. The loving family had given up an egg just so that the location of St. Aggie's would be known. A couple of Snowy Owls followed the scout who took the egg a couple of hours ago. They would be back soon to tell Nirma and Cedric that their egg was safely delivered. Hortense would carry on after them, and ultimately save their egg and hopefully all the others. She had talked with her eagle friends Zan and Streak, who heartily agreed they would check in at the bottom. Hortense swiveled her head the other way, to the west, and saw two faint silhouettes coming off from the distance. Hortense guessed these were the two Snowy Owl messengers. Hortense sighed, and began the first phase; plucking her feathers. She winced as the feathers fell to the forest floor. Within a few minutes, she was naked pink and shivering. The Snowy Owls spotted her and landed beside her. No words were exchanged, as Hortense was cold beyond belief, and the Snowies already acknowledged Hortense as a hero. The HALO worked, and the owls weren't spotted in the cloudy fog.

They flew to a tree a few kilometers from the headquarters, and set Hortense on the ground. They gave her an encouraging smile and took off. Now Hortense was alone, and ready.

"Good luck." The Snowy Owls smiled. "One of the St. Aggie scouts will surely come and find you soon."

Sure enough, within a half hour, a Short Eared Owl was spotted taking off from the cliff, and gradually it made its way to Hortense. Hortense smiled, and started fake-crying. The Short Eared Owl flew and hovered right above Hortense.

"Are you lost, O little one?" It smiled a menacing smile. And with a swift kick, Hortense was unconscious. The Short Eared Owl picked up Hortense in its talons and flew towards St. Aggies.

As Hortense neared the canyon where St. Aggie's was located, a shrill voice pierced the cold wind. "Welcome owlets. Welcome to St. Aegolius. This is your new home. It is here that you will find truth…." Hortense didn't bother listening, mostly because she didn't want to, and because another gust of wind blocked out the sound the Great Horned Owl was making, but Hortense knew that owl to be her enemy, the Ablah General of St. Aegolius.

Hortense was forced into a line in the circling pits. She was standing behind a Barn Owl who was curious about everything and wouldn't stop moving. Interesting, she thought. A Snowy came to greet the owls in Hortense's line. "I am Finny, your pit guardian. I could also be a pit angel if you prefer, but I'd love it more if you all just called me Auntie. I must, of course, call you by your number designation, which you shall shortly be told." Finny voice was sweet, like a real nurse, but Hortense didn't buy it.

"Oh, goody!" Hortense hopped up and down, trying to act excited.

The Barn Owl turned to her and asked, "Why do you want a number instead of your name?" he curiously asked.

Hortense innocently replied, "Hortense! You wouldn't like that name either! Now shush. Remember, no questions. And that's a Snowy Owl by the way."

Finny stepped in front of Hortense, and gave her number to her, 12-8. Pah! If only Finny knew why Hortense was really here. She'd done her studying of St. Aggie's. Next she'd be ushered into the Glaucidium to be moon blinked, but she would just march in place, hide in any shadows, and gradually work her way up to be a broody.

As the owls were ushered in, Hortense saw that the Barn Owl Soren had taken a liking to looking her way. She ignored his gaze and assumed the sleeping position, reciting Ga'Hoolian Legends under her breath.

Over the weeks, Hortense had surpassed the expectations of 57-9, the fleck sorting star, and humbly requested to Jutt during the Marching that she'd do great as an assistant to Finny, or Nursey, or Auntie, or whatever she was called. Finny was also the top Broody, and would surely put in a good word for her. One day, she wound up meeting Soren again, this time he was featherless, just like her

Apparently, he had asked a question and wound up being plucked. Finny was 'nursing' him now. Quickly, to suck up to Finny, she said, "Ooh, a patient! A patient! Show me how to make moss pulp!" All was done with the perfect blank look on her face. She exchanged a few words with Soren, learning more about him. She almost burst out laughing when he said 'broodorium', but she remembered she had not yet mastered laughing as a moon-blinked owl, and merely shrugged off his remark. Nursey had left and come back, and Soren told Finny how he liked the Ga'Hoolian Legends. Nursey completely fainted. For a moment, Hortense stared hard at Soren. This owl could be something else, she thought. There's no way this owl is moon blinked if he still talks about the legends. I need to get this guy to broody status. If he really isn't moon blinked, he'll know he's going to come to me.

Sure enough, Soren did come back, but he had another Elf Owl with him, she casually walked over to them, ready to gather some more information. The Elf Owl took the initiative. Her number was 25-2 right? Quickly thought Hortense.

They exchanged a few words. This is one smart moon-blinked owl, Hortense thought. The little Elf Owl kept complimenting her on her extraordinary performance. The one sentence that caught her off guard was, "You are beyond humbleness! You are… subglacious!"

Hortense blinked, and said, "Your words are kind, 25-2. I shall hope that they might encourage me in my continuing quest for humility while in service to a great cause." Hortense put on an even more moon blinked face and walked away. She had better watch it; she almost lost her composure there. Now she was positive these owls weren't moon blinked. If those two owlets blurted anything out, it'd be the end of her campaign.

That night, Hortense was waiting on her nest in the hatchery to hand off some eggs to Zan, who would be coming later at First Light. Hortense gazed at the moonless sky and marveled at the stars. She could faintly make out the Golden Talon through the small space she had to look through to see the sky. Her ears twitched as she heard talonsteps coming up to her nest. She quickly put on her moon blinked look and watched as Soren and 25-2 came up to her nest.

"Welcome 25-2 and 12-1 to my humble abode." She raised a featherless wing and invited them closer to her nest, crowded with eggs of various species. They exchanged a few words. Hortense did her best to make herself look moon blinked, but gradually she concluded that wouldn't be necessary.

"Hortense cut the pellets. I saw you deliver an egg from this nest to an eagle." Gylfie exclaimed after Hortense tried to convince the two she was indeed moon blinked.

Hortense hesitated. Could she tell these two? "You saw?" she inquired quietly.

"I saw, Hortense. You are no more moon blinked than we are." Hortense saw that these owls were ones she could trust with the secrets of her mission. She had a good long talk with them, relishing the feeling of normal conversation again. She took off her moon blinked face and revealed her lovely bright brown eyes. She admired Soren for his bravery and Gylfie for her cleverness. Together, the two would be able to escape from this dreaded academy. She chuckled when she revealed to the two realized just how old she was. Priceless faces they had. At the end of their conversation, Hortense instructed the two owlets to come back up at about First Light to see her eagle friends rescue the eggs.

Later at First Light, Soren and Gylfie did indeed come back. Hortense was glad. She was excited to introduce Zan to her new friends. Maybe when this was all over, the whole group could go and have a feast in Ambala. She greeted them, and the three turned to the sky to see a white head and yellow beak in the distance heading towards them. Hortense's ears twitched. Someone was coming!

Gylfie and Soren dived into a small crevice in the rock wall near her nest. Zan was just almost here. If she could at least give one egg to her and then send her away, no one would notice. Hortense quickly held an egg in her wings, hopped off her nest, and walked to the little sill beside the opening in the canyon. The talonsteps were growing louder and faster. Alert, Hortense leapt back onto her nest. Up to her nest stormed an enraged Finny, Skench and Spoorn, Jutt and Jatt!

"I suspected her for some time!" Finny roared and yanked Hortense right off her nest. Zan was now at the egg, but instead decided to help Hortense. She swiped at Jutt and Jatt, keeping them back. Hortense could dimly hear Zan screeching as Finny gave her a blow to her head. The rest was a blur. The night was filled with yellow eyes, white feathers, and blood. Hortense howled as a talon slashed at her left wing, almost splitting it in half. Hortense looked up at her attacker, and received another slash, this time at her right eye. She let out a piercing scream, and began to move backwards, trying to find the egg. She heard Zan slash at another owl, probably Spoorn. Hortense found the edge and was now looking to find and protect the egg. She still heard Zan zooming around the place.

"No Zan…Leave me. Just get the egg!" Hortense cried. She wasn't sure if Zan got the message, for as soon as she got her bearings straight again, a talon appeared out of nowhere and smashed against her chest. Hortense gasped and fell backwards of emptiness. She screamed as she began to plummet down. She closed her eyes. She heard in the distance Zan letting out another screech and then slashing at Finny, who cried out in pain as she fell backwards. Hortense flapped her good but weak right featherless wing. She turned on her back, and looked at the black she was falling into. She let her eyes close themselves and spread out her body. She had accomplished so much, but she wanted to accomplish more. She hoped to death that Soren and Gylfie were still safe. Those owls would create their own legacy as they grew up. They might find the famed Ga'Hoole Tree and train to be Guardians of Ga'Hoole.

Hortense stopped thinking about anything at once and opened her eyes again, she was still falling. The blackness was now turning grey for some reason. Maybe this was part of dying? Everything seemed to slow down and stop as the mysterious grey field consumed Hortense.


End file.
